Collaboration for Agriculture and Rural Development
(CARD)
Program
38
ESTABLISHMENT OF THE GLOBALGAP SYSTEM FOR DRAGON FRUIT
FAMERS AND EXPORTER IN THE SOUTHERN PROVINCES
Proj
ect title:
Developing GAP systems for dragon fruit producers and exporters in Binh Thuan
and Tien Giang provinces
Project c
ode
:
CARD
037/04 VIE
Authors:
Nguyen Van Hoa
1
,
Nguyen Huu Hoang
1
,
John M. Campbell
2
, Nguyen Minh Chau
2
Project Implementing organi
sations:
1
Southern Fruit Research Institute
2

the farmer and packer to meet compliance with the EUREPGAP and BRC standards in 2006.
Translation of the Manual into Vietnamese has
been distributed to the farmers and packers. The
Vietnamese personnel have upgraded the EUREGAP manual to GlobalGAP in Vietnamese and the
BRC also revised to the new version 5 in Vietnamese. (iv) The national personnel capacity building in
GlobalGAP and BR
C were well done with plenty of technical staff and farmers trained.
1.
Introduction
Recently, dragon fruit production in Vietnam
was about more than 13,500 ha producing with
approximately 211,000 tons with the average
farm’s holder from 0.5 to 1.0 ha d
epending on
production areas of which are either in
Mekong Delta Regions or in Binh Thuan
province (Nguyen Minh Chau, 2007). The
benefits from dragon fruit industry will be
improved significantly as if small land
-
holding
dragon fruit farmers and exporters
could
expand its markets to the new and high value
ones in EU or Northern America. This,
however, the dragon fruit exporters should be
market driven and initiative in exploring
potential markets for themselves. He high
value markets from Japan, EU and Nort
hern

stakehold
ers participating in this project of
implementation of GAP from high value
markets was always higher than as compared
to before implementing GAP”. Higher revenue
from producing, packaging and exporting of
dragon fruit compliance to GAP will ensure
the sust
ainable growth in dragon fruit industry.
This growth also ensures the increase of
mummer of small land holders to join in the
programme and therefore the improvement of
rural life standards is indispensable.
The enhancement of national capacity both in
pub
lic and private sectors through practical
implementing of GAP is included.

Evaluation of practical producing of dragon
fruit in Vietnam in comparison to
EUREPGAP standards by surveillance in a
large scale from Binh Thuan to Tien Giang
and Long provinces, t
he development of
questionnaire and result analysis and
evaluation were carried out by
HortResearch’s experts.

Enhancement in knowledge of dragon fruit
producing for SOFRI’s staff and

3.
Research results and discussions
3.1
Benchmarking survey of dragon fruit
production
The benchmarking survey of dragon fruit
production was conducted by end of July 2005.
There were
125 farmers in Binh Thuan and 30
farmers in Long An and Tien Giang provinces
to be interviewed to collect data. SOFRI’s
project staff had interviewed and collected data
using the questionnaire and also recorded the
information on cultivation practices and
other
related techniques which were relevant to
practical producing of dragon fruit.
The survey data were analysed at
HortResearch by Dr. Jim Walker and Patrick
Connolly had prepared the report by Power
point for John Campbell presented at SOFRI
during th
e trip visit and working at Vietnam in
March and April 2007. The presentation was
then, used as tools in training for farmers and
packers in this area.
3.2
Development of quality manual
The manual was first written by English and
the translated into Vietna

–
Issue 5.
3.3
Establishment of programme for
implementation GAP pilot models
3.3.1
Choose for standards of quality
management systems
At farm level, EUREPGAP standard and at
packing house, BRC standard were selected for
implementation. The b
oth standards will be
supplementing to each other to ensure dragon
fruit being produced and packed in a quality,
legality and meeting the requirements of high
value markets, “satisfaction of customers’
demands” on traceability.
3.3.2
At packer level
Hoang
Hau Company’s dragon fruit packing
house was selected as packaging pilot model.
Thereafter, project team had negotiated with
Mr. Tran Ngoc Hiep (director) about level of
implementation and the collaboration with
project in development of the packing house
to
comply with BRC standard. By mid 2006, an
MOU between Mr. Tran Ngoc Hiep and Dr.
Nguyen Minh Chau was signed.

quality manual; training for each position
stated as its responsibili
ty in the pilot; Roles of
internal auditor; responsibility of internal
auditor; process of improvement and
promotion for sustainable production.
Dragon fruit
Quality
Manual fo
r
P
roducers and Packing house
and GAP Manual for
fruit
producers
CARD 037/04VIE
–
Developing GAP system for dragon fruit
41
3.3.3
At farm level
The farmer group was set up and trainings
were conducted for farmers on quality systems
whi
ch fetch back more benefits if compliance
to GAP. The project had also focused and
instructed farmers specifically to help them to
approach and comply with the standards before
the auditing of certify body. The selected
farmers’ group, however, could not m

model, certification and lastly, 80 ha of d
ragon
fruit was certified for EUREPGAP in 2007.
Base on the certified project pilot model
–
Hoang Hau Dragon Fruit company and its
contracted supplying farmers’ group, got re
-
certificated by October 2008, with increase in
area up to 230 ha (compared to 80
ha in 2007)
and it was repeated in 2009. The achievement
came from the enhancement of capability of
local facilitators of project in regarding of
techniques and proper skills in organisation
and implementation.
Currently, the project team is working to
exp
and the GlobalGAP dragon fruit model in
Tien Giang province up to 100 ha by the end
of 2009 or 2010; While, in Long An province,
the GlobalGAP dragon fruit model of 30 ha is
being developed with expectation for
certification by the end of 2010, and plan to
expand up to 400
–
500 ha.
GlobalGAP certification for contracted farmer
group supplying dragon fruit to Hoang Hau
Dragon Fruit Co.

market had made a considerable effect to
the production of dragon fruit pilot model.

BRC issue 5 was more difficult to the
packer than the issue 3.

There were some problems and co
nstraints
arising between X
-
ray plant owner with
packer/exporter.
3.5
Building capacity
While delivering the project, Mr. Nguyen Huu
Hoang had visited fruit GlobalGAP farms and
BRC packing houses etc. in New Zealand and
also participated in 2
-
day training
course for
Internal Auditing at Hasting NZ in July 2006.
After that, through the agreement from New
Zealand Organization of Quality (NZOQ), a
training course for Introduction to Internal
Auditor had been delivered to 8 staff of SOFRI
by John Campbell and
Nguyen Huu Hoang,
using parts of training materials of the same
course provided by NZOQ.

certified for GlobalGAP in 2
008.
In 2009, SGS
–
Vietnam had organized a
training course for Lead Auditor (LAC) in
which two SOFRI’s staff, Dr. Nguyen Van
Hoa and Nguyen Huu Hoang were invited and
qualified to be the lead auditor.
SGS
–
Vietnam training on HACCP and
Internal Audit for SOFRI and provincial staff
Trainings on GAP, IPM on dragon
fruit for farmers
Nguyen Van Tuat, Pham Ngoc Dung, Nguyen Thi Ly, Le Thu Hien
43
3.6
Publication
During delivering project, a number of
publications had been released,
in which some
major publishing listed below:

Handbook for GAP fruit production.
Agricultural Publisher, 2007.

Handbook for trainer for GAP fruit and
vegetables (Training guidelines for trainer
who are playing role as extension workers,

The benchmarking survey on dragon fruit
production and from the analytical data and
d
iscussions, some weakness had been found
and needed to pay more attentions for
correction and improvement to approach to
and to get certificated for GlobalGAP for
230 ha of dragon fruit in 2008 and renewed
certification the same area in 2009.

Two quality
manual had been developed by
project: (i) EurepGAP dragon fruit quality
manual, after that, SOFRI’s project team
had upgraded the EUREPGAP manual to
GLOBALGAP with some details was put in
and increase in content volume for producer
and packer. (ii) Separat
ion of section for
BRC
–
standard for packing house and
packer with other sections and also
upgraded from issue 3 to issue 5.

Organising a number of training courses on
GlobalGAP, ICM, safe use of agri
-
chemical, first aid, safe growth, etc. with
certificat